Ladi-Paav : Dinner rolls

Who on earth does not love paav-bhaaji.. The soft paavs with the creamy spicy bhaaji along with onion and wedges of lemon. Isn't it blissful!!

So yesterday, I tried to bake paav for dinner. Unfortunately, I went for a nap with my daughter and that nap turned into a deep sleep :-D

I forgot to knead the dough but back in the mind I was getting crazy to bake them. So I immediately got up and went straight into my kitchen and started the preparations. However, we could not have paav-bhaaji for dinner yesterday and ended up with khichdi. But eventually I baked a batch of these beauties and they turned out to be extremely fluffy and light, just like the store bought ones. And I don't remember which number of attempt this was but it was the most successful one and I was on cloud nine after they came out of the oven.

And now, without much adieu I shall start the recipe!

For the ladi paav:

Active dry yeast- 2+1/4 tsp
Sugar- 2tbsp
Maida- 2 cups
Melted Butter- 3 tbsp
Salt- 1 tsp
Lukewarm water(100C-105C)- 1 Cup

Steps:


The very first step is to activate/proof the yeast. Make sure the yeast is fresh and not expired or been kept for very long.PLEASE throw away any yeast that has been opened but not used for over 3 months or so because the dough won't raise otherwise. I did the same mistake and wasted many batches of my effort.
Take warm water in a cup and add sugar and yeast to it and stir well and keep aside covered for 10-15 minutes.
You will find that the yeast has become frothy and little bit raised on the top.


Now in a bowl take maida and add melted butter and salt and the proofed yeast water and knead well.
If your dough gets too sticky(like mine went) and unmanageable you can always add a little more flour. The dough should be sticky yet firm and soft. Knead well till 8-10 minutes. This is very important so as to activate gluten in the dough.

Grease a bowl and roll the dough in it. Keep covered with a wet cloth or kitchen towel for about 1.5- 2 hours depending on the weather outside.

After 2 hours you will find that the dough has doubled up in size. Its time to punch it back again.

Dough initially

Doubled up in size

The mesh due to the yeast!

Punch it back

Roll them into balls and keep aside

They are again doubled up- Second Rise

Clean your kitchen counter and sprinkle some flour over it and punch your dough again and release all the air. Push the dough away from you with the help of the balls of your palm. Bring the dough to its normal volume.

Now pinch out balls from the dough as you do while making chapatis. Make round balls of the dough approximately the size of a big lemon.
Grease a baking tray or pan and dust it with some flour.

 Place the dough balls in the greased baking tray at a distance of 1 inch. Leave them covered again for 1 hour till they again rise and get connected to each other. Now its time for baking.

Preheat the oven at 200C for 10 minutes and bake these for around 8-10 minutes or till they get a golden hue on top. Mine went a bit longer and they got brown on the underside.

Take them out and place on a wire rack till they are cool if you want to store them. You may have them immediately too. These can be stored wrapped in a cellophane sheet for 3-4 days :)

See the mesh and air pockets inside

 This is a very easy and foolproof recipe and trust me you won't buy paavs from the store once you bake these yourselves at home. Hygienic and Homemade.. what else better to give your family. Give it a try. Happy Baking fellas!